Semiconductor devices have become progressively more complex, driven at least in part by the demand for smaller sizes and enhanced processing speeds. While the benefits of smaller sizes and enhanced processing speeds are apparent, these characteristics of semiconductor devices also can create problems.
In conventional wafer-level packaging, semiconductor devices within a wafer are packaged prior to singulation of the wafer. As such, conventional wafer-level packaging can be restricted to a fan-in configuration, namely electrical contacts and other components of a resulting semiconductor device package are restricted to an area defined by a periphery of a semiconductor device. Any component disposed outside of the periphery of the semiconductor device typically is not supported and typically is removed upon singulation. The restriction of a fan-in configuration presents challenges as device sizes continue to shrink.
It is against this background that a need arose to develop the wafer-level semiconductor device packages and related methods described herein.